Kinesthetic Symbols: Harnessing the Power of Gesturing
DR. SPENCER KAGAN
To cite this article: Kagan, S. Kinaesthetic Symbols: Harnessing the Power of Gesturing San Clemente, CA: Kagan
Publishing. Kagan Online Magazine, Spring/Summer 2014. www.KaganOnline.com
Great ideas originate in the muscles.
—Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931)
For quite a few years we have been training teachers in the use of Kinaesthetic Symbols. Teachers have students
symbolize content with their hands, bodies, and gestures. Functions of a president, parts of speech, steps of an
algorithm, and stages of cell life, are all samples of content taught not just with words, but also with gestures.
Teachers in the classrooms and trainers in their workshops consistently report very positive results. Teachers are
boosting their vocabulary test scores from an average of 75 to an average of 95 by having students create and
practice a kinaesthetic symbol for the meaning of each word. I am amused by one result: A boy shyly admitted to his
teacher that he had cheated on the vocabulary test. She asked how. "I put my hands in the desk and did the
kinaesthetic symbols to remember."
Most teachers encourage students to use Kinaesthetic
Symbols as memory aides during recall. Sarah Backner, a
Kagan Trainer, recalls that as a teacher,
I had a high population of second language learners in my
classroom and found that Kinaesthetic Symbols had a big
impact on helping students raise their test scores. I knew
that Kinaesthetic Symbols played a role in raising scores
because during their weekly vocabulary quiz, I could see
students doing the Kinaesthetic Symbols at their desk as
they were going through the quiz to remind themselves
what the words meant.
Amal Mahmoud Al Shariti at Liwa International School in Al
Ain, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, teaches her English-as-
a-second-language students a kinaesthetic symbol for each
vocabulary word. For example, when introduced to the word "reliable" students learn to say the word while giving
themselves a pat on the shoulder. As they say "sociable" they intertwine their fingers like many people interacting.
As they say "astounded" students put both hands under their jaws and open their mouths wide in an exaggerated
expression of surprise. The students now receive very high marks on their vocabulary words whereas prior to using
Kinaesthetic Symbols their performance was substantially lower. Amal writes,
After attending one of Mrs. Laurie Kagan's workshops in which she used Kinaesthetic Symbols in training Kagan
Structures, I decided to use them in my class. I started using them with vocabulary lessons, and the results were
awesome — one of the students whose average score was 11 out of 20 showed a great improvement and could
achieve a score of 19 out of 20. After that, I started using Kinaesthetic Symbols in all my classes. I am teaching
grade seven right now, but I have used Kinaesthetic Symbols with all levels, and the results are
always unbelievable. Using the Kinaesthetic Symbols is full of fun and it is effective in keeping energy levels high
and in recalling information on tests. The part I enjoy most is when all the students are involved in creating their
own kinaesthetic symbols and giving me ideas to make the actions either easier or harder, as that stimulates their
critical thinking.
Ways to Use Kinaesthetic Symbols
There are various ways teachers are using Kinaesthetic Symbols, differing in who makes up the symbols and how
they are used.
Who Makes Up the Symbols? The teacher may make up the symbols and then teach them to the students.
Alternatively, each team may make up its own symbols. Or in some cases, teachers have students each create their
own unique symbols. There is something to be said for each approach. If the class uses the symbols as response
modes, it is important the whole class has the same set of symbols. The process of having teams make up their own
symbols serves as teambuilding. Individuals making up their own unique symbols gives them practice in cross
translating from a verbal symbol system to a kinaesthetic symbol system. Given the advantages of each approach,
age permitting, I would recommend that teachers incorporate each approach at different times.
How to Use Kinaesthetic Symbols. There are many ways Kinaesthetic Symbols are used including as response
modes, for isolated content, for sequences of content, as signals, and to reinforce verbal instruction. They serve
primarily, for students to practice content and as a memory aide in recall.
Kinaesthetic Symbols as Response Modes. Kinaesthetic Symbols are handy (literally) as response modes. After
students have practiced the symbols and are fluent with them, the teacher can then post or project a sentence with
missing punctuation marks, point to each missing punctuation in turn, and on cue have students respond with the
appropriate kinaesthetic symbol. For example, the teacher might post the following:
Kinaesthetic Symbols for Punctuation
Period Fist
Colon Two fists, one above the other
Comma Hand curved in shape of letter C
Semi-Colon Fist above + hand curved below
Exclamation Mark Fist below of raised forearm
If Jonny has enough money ___ he will buy a new bike___ The teacher says, "When I snap my fingers, everyone
give me the kinaesthetic symbol for the punctuation that belongs in the blank"
Kinaesthetic Symbols for Isolated Content. Sometimes the symbols are used in isolation as when a symbol is created
for each vocabulary word, the names of types of rocks, the names of elements, the names of geometric forms, or the
branches of government. Some teachers have used the symbols to help students remember the class rules: Misty
Higgins, another Kagan Trainer, taught high school biology at Anderson County High School in Lexington, Kentucky.
When I asked her how she used Kinaesthetic Symbols, she responded, "I used Kinaesthetic Symbols for class rules at
the beginning of the year." Misty, used the symbols for a range of content during the school year: including
anatomical terminology in anatomy and physiology. In her words
The most important thing I believe the Kinaesthetic Symbols did was to give students something to anchor their
thinking, to connect with the content. It helped then to conceptualize abstract concepts. Basically, providing for
more linkages in the brain around specific content.
While coaching in a middle school science classroom, Sarah Backner, a Kagan Trainer, saw a teacher using
Kinaesthetic Symbols to help students remember the part of a cell.
For each part of the cell students had a kinaesthetic symbol that reminded them of the function. For example
when they talked about the mitochondria as the power of the cell, students flexed their muscles. When they
talked about the nucleus, students tapped their brains.
Melissa Wincel provides a powerful example of how teaching Kinaesthetic Symbols for isolated content improved
both reading and writing. She taught her kindergarten students at Trafalgar Elementary School in Cape Coral, Florida,
the 70 sounds associated with the letters in the alphabet. She describes the results,
Kinaesthetic Symbols were key to the children remembering the sounds of the letters. Every one of my students
walked out of my kindergarten class reading. I had some kindergarteners reading at a 3rd grade level! When my
students came to a word they couldn't read by sight I would see them using the kinaesthetic symbols to decode
unknown words.
Not only did it impact reading significantly, but also their writing. The program gave them the confidence to sound
words out and write the sounds they heard. Having Kinaesthetic Symbols made it less inhibiting to their
writing and creativity. Students didn't constantly ask "how do you spell…?"
Kinaesthetic Symbols for Sequences. Often the symbols are used to remember a sequence of items in order as
when the students are memorizing the ten amendments in the Bill of Rights, the steps of how a bill becomes a law,
the parts of a letter, or the steps of a math algorithm. By practicing the sequence repeatedly, it becomes automatic
and even fairly long sequences can be recalled in order perfectly. Misty used the symbols for sequences like
chromosomal movement during the stages of cell division, stages of photosynthesis, and cellular respiration.
Angela Pinkerton, a Kagan Trainer, used Kinaesthetic Symbols with her first grade students to help them remember
the steps of an algorithm called CUBES for tackling word problems. In her words:
I taught my students a problem solving strategy for word problems called CUBES. Before solving the word
problem, we would stand up and review each letter's meaning with a corresponding kinaesthetic symbol.
Circle the numbers (we drew a large circle in the air as we said the phrase).
Underline the key words (we drew a straight line across our bodies horizontally as we said "underline",
as we said "key" we pretended to put a key in the door, then twisted the key as we said "words").
Box the question (we drew a box in the air, saying one word or syllable at a time as we drew each side of
the square).
X out Extra info (we put our arms in an X across our bodies for X, then dropped them down on "out,"
then threw our right thumbs over our right shoulders when saying "extra info."
Show your work (we drew a giant S in the air as we said the phrase).
Then students sat down and followed each step with a word problem in their math journal. We did this as a daily
math warm up, and my first graders never forgot the strategy.
Kinaesthetic Symbols as Signals. Some teachers teach their students to silently convey information to the teacher. “I
need help” “Please slow down” “I need a restroom break” and “I don’t understand” are some common examples. The
flip side of the coin is the teacher may use Kinaesthetic Symbols to signal the class. “Please work quieter” “You are
working really well” or “Please come see me” are examples. Without disturbing the other students, a teacher can
silently signal an individual or a team.
Kinaesthetic Symbols as Coaching Tips. Sarah Backner provides an example of how her students used Kinaesthetic
Symbols to scaffold support for each other within the Quiz-Quiz-Trade structure:
I used Kinaesthetic Symbols in my second grade classroom at Martinez Elementary School in North Las Vegas, NV
each week for my vocabulary words. On Monday, I would introduce the class to the words with kinaesthetic
symbols. Then as the week went on and we reviewed our vocabulary words using structures, students had their
coaching tips ready to go. For example in Quiz-Quiz-Trade, if your partner is stuck on the definition, Tip #1:
demonstrate the kinaesthetic symbol.
Kinaesthetic Symbols to Recall Steps of Structures. Some teachers have used Kinaesthetic Symbols to have students
remember the steps of a cooperative learning structure. Kindergarten students easily recall the steps of Mix-Pair-
Share once they have learned the symbol for each step.
Common Kinaesthetic Symbols. In the chart below, are content examples – academic content taught with
Kinaesthetic Symbols.
Academic Content Taught with Kinaesthetic Symbols
Language Arts Math Social Studies Science
• Simile v.
Metaphor
• Punctuation
Marks
• Proofreading
Marks
• Parts of
Speech
• Literary
Techniques
• Vocabulary
Words
• Figures of
Speech
• Forms of Linear
Equations
• Angles
• Geometric
Figures
• Math
Symbols: (Plus,
Minus, Equal,
Divide,
Multiply,
Exponent…)
• Order of
Operations
• Patterns
• Steps of An
Algorithm
• Land Forms
• Branches of
Government
• Accomplishments
of
• Historical Figure
• Bill of Rights
• Events in
Sequence
• Functions of the
President
• Steps: Bill
Becomes a Law
• Geologic
Regions
• Types of Rocks
• States of
Matter
• Classes of
Animals
• Body Systems
• Measurement
Units
• Stages of Cell
Life
Kinaesthetic Symbols for Kinaesthetic Learners. Although I strongly advocate teaching all students with Kinaesthetic
Symbols, Kinaesthetic Symbols can have an amazingly liberating impact on students who are especially strong in the
bodily/kinaesthetic intelligence. One of a number of examples is Paula’s story.1 Early in her school career Paula was
assessed as learning disabled; she developed a very low self-esteem, and a dislike for school. By fifth grade Paula was
several grade levels behind her classmates. Paula attempted suicide in the summer before sixth grade.
Her sixth grade teacher noticed Paula moved with poise and dignity. Following her hunch that Paula would benefit
from kinaesthetic instruction, Paula’s teacher asked her to create a “movement alphabet” — movements to form
the letters of the alphabet. Paula responded. Not only did she create letters, she sequenced them into a dance.
Paula went on to dance her name, the words on the blackboard, spelling words, and even entire sentences. She
performed for her class. Paula’s self-esteem and liking for school increased. By the end of sixth grade, Paula reached
grade level in reading and writing. In seventh grade, she was mainstreamed in all classes and received above-average
grades!
Had her teacher not recognized Paula’s unique learning style, Paula’s academic career (and possibly her life) would
not have been saved. Paula’s story is one of many that illustrate the power of adapting how we teach to how
students best learn.
Gestures and Kinaesthetic Symbols Accelerate Learning
Teachers use Kinaesthetic Symbols and gestures while teaching. Whereas the hand symbols created during the
Kagan Structure Kinaesthetic Symbols are deliberately created and often involve considerable thought, gestures are
spontaneous symbolization of ideas, often created unconsciously.
There is a growing body of research indicating gestures and Kinaesthetic Symbols used by teachers are powerful
symbol systems that promote learning, retention, and transfer of learning. Gesturing is extremely important in
cognition, problem solving, and cognitive development. Students who are taught to gesture as they learn, learn
more. Merely observing the teacher gesturing during instruction increases achievement. Before presenting that
research let’s list some of what is known about gesturing:
• Gesturing is not merely imitation and does not need
to be learned by watching others. Congenitally blind
individuals gesture.2
• Young children spontaneously use hand gestures
while telling stories,3 solving problems,4 and during
conversation.5
• Memory for action words is increased when the
corresponding action is performed as the word is
said.6
• Making a gesture that improperly represents a
subsequent action, interferes with ability to perform
that action quickly or accurately.7
• Watching someone make a gesture while explaining
an action determines how the viewer will perform
the action.8
• If we have performed an action, when we hear that action described in words, our premotor cortex becomes
active. The more we have performed the action, the more our premotor cortex activates upon hearing the
word. The implication: Comprehension of action speech is facilitated by the motor cortex.9
• Training gesturing is associated with improved skills in mental rotation and spatial transformation.
Spontaneous gesturing during mental rotation tasks predicts higher performance.10
• Gesturing not only represents thought, it influences thought, and may express thought of which we are
unaware.11
• Gesturing represents an independent cognitive symbol system that enriches understanding and increases
learning and retention.12
• Teachers who gesture while giving instructions increase the probability of students’ gesturing which in turn
leads to increased learning.13
• When the same verbal lecture is given with and without gestures, students in the gesture condition rate the
lecture as more understandable and are more confident they have answered correctly the test questions on
the lecture.14
Gesturing and Executive Function. Executive function is more important than general intelligence with regard to
problem solving and cognitive development. Executive function refers to the cognitive processes that we use to
control our thinking and behavior when trying to achieve a goal or solve a problem. It is dependent on four factors:
1) short-term memory: holding content in memory, 2) working memory: manipulating content mentally, 3) impulse
control: inhibiting interfering thoughts and impulses, and 4) cognitive flexibility: shifting from one perspective to
another or from one problem solving strategy to another. In short, executive function is smarts. Whereas general
intelligence includes the information we have accumulated and is dependent on learning and culture, executive
function describes the most important pure cognitive abilities. As such it is better than IQ in predicting a person’s
ability to learn and problem solve. Executive function develops from infancy through late adolescence.15
The use of gestures predicts the development of executive function even better than does age! In an extraordinarily
revealing study, children ages 2.5 to 6 years of age were given a test of executive function, and their gesturing was
carefully videotaped and analyzed.16 Results indicated that gesturing predicted executive function better than did
age: “…both gesturing and age contributed significantly to task performance. However, gesturing was the stronger
predictor of accuracy….” Further, spontaneous gesturing predicted accuracy better than spontaneous verbalization:
“Whereas 97% of the spontaneous gestures on a given trial resulted in correct sorts on that trial, only 69% of
spontaneous verbalizations resulted in correct sorts.” Interestingly, those children who used gestures most did
better on the cognitive tasks even when they were not using gesturing. It is possible that gesturing, like speech, is
internalized. When children learn to read, they move from subvocal speech to internalized speech or silent reading.
Perhaps children who have learned to gesture internalize the gestures, moving from performing the gestures to
merely visualizing them or remembering them nonverbally in the pre-motor cortex, without a need to carry out the
action.
Gesturing Predicts Cognitive Leaps. Gesturing predicts that students are ready to make a cognitive leap. In a classic
Piaget conservation task, water is poured from a short, wide beaker into a tall, thin beaker and children are asked
where there was more water. Those that have acquired conservation of liquid say the amount of water is the same;
those that have not, say the tall thin beaker held more water. Gesturing predicts which children will show more
improvement when they are subsequently taught! Among the children who lacked quantity invariance, when asked
to explain their reasoning, those who spontaneously showed with their hands the decrease in width of the taller
beaker, showed the greater improvement following subsequent training.17
Teacher Gestures Improve Student Achievement. Instruction that includes speech and gestures produces more
learning than speech alone.18 Students who mimic their teacher’s hand gestures while solving math problems are
more likely to obtain correct solutions.19 Preschool children who watch an instructor produce meaningful gestures
while teaching about symmetry obtain the symmetry concept better than those who receive the same instruction
without gestures.20 First grade students obtain conservation better from a videotaped lesson if the instructor uses
gestures.21 Observing teacher gestures facilitates different types of learning.22
Teacher Gestures Facilitate Student Retention and Transfer. Not only do teacher gestures improve immediate
acquisition of content, they also improve consolidation and retention of content and transfer of concepts to new
problems. In a very tightly controlled gesturing study, experimenters gave second and third grade students
instruction in mathematical equivalence via videotaped lessons in which the instructor either used gestures while
teaching or gave the equivalent audio instruction without gestures.23 Students were given a pretest, and those who
could not solve the math equivalence problems were included in the study. Students were tested immediately after
instruction and then 24 hours later. To test retention and transference, the delayed post-test included not only
problems like those on which the students were instructed, but also problems that required transferring the concept
of equivalence to a different type problem.
Many students mistake the equal sign as a sign to add numbers.24 When students are taught to add with problems
like 8 + 6 = ___ many interpret the equal sign as a merely a sign to display a sum, not understanding that it is a sign
to show equivalence. Many students obtain the correct answer, but they have only procedural knowledge; they lack
conceptual knowledge. That is, they do not understand the equal sign is a sign to make the two sides of the equation
equivalent. To test for acquisition of conceptual knowledge, the researchers used problems like 8 + 6 + 2 = ___ + 2.
In the instruction video the instructor said, “I want to make one side equal to the other side. Eight plus six plus two is
sixteen, and fourteen plus two is sixteen. So, one side is equal to the other side.” For audio only instruction, the
instructor kept her hands to her sides. For the audio plus gesture instruction, whenever the teacher said the words
“one side,” she swept her left hand back and forth beneath the left side of the equation, and whenever she referred
to “the other side” she swept her right hand back and forth beneath the right half of the equation.
When gestures are added to instruction, students not only learn better, they retain the concept better, and are
better able to apply the concept in a new context.
Results: Students who were instructed with gestures performed better than those who received the same
instruction without gestures. They performed significantly better on the immediate posttest, delayed posttest (24
hours later), and on transfer tests. See graph: Teacher Gestures Improve Achievement & Transfer.
There are two very important implications to note about these results beyond simply that gestures boost
achievement. The results strongly support the conclusions that: 1) gestures foster consolidation of new learning
during sleep, or at least retention of new learning, and 2) gestures foster concept attainment.
“Students instructed with gestures perform better on the immediate posttest, delayed posttest, and on transfer
tests.”
Gestures Increase Retention. The brain consolidates new learning during sleep.25 It may be that gestures help in this
consolidation process: The audio plus gesture group showed higher performance following sleep whereas the audio
only group did not. (Difference between the two groups at immediate testing was p < .01; Difference after sleep, p <
.0001). We cannot say with certainty that sleep consolidation is the cause of the increased retention in the gesture
group, but it seems likely. At minimum we can say with certainty: Gestures increase retention.
Gestures Foster Concept Attainment. The results of the transfer test are particularly telling. During instruction and
during the immediate posttest, equations contained the same numbers on the right and left side of the equation.
Problems were of the following type: 7 + 2 + 9 = 7 + ___. Students could learn to solve these problems with
procedural, but not conceptual knowledge. That is, they could learn to ignore the numbers that were the same on
both sides of the equation (the 7’s in the example) and simply add the remaining numbers to get an answer. They
could obtain the right answer without having grasped the concept of equivalence. To test for transfer of the
equivalence concept, the second grade students were given problems in which no number was repeated on both the
right and left sides of the equation. For example, their problems were of this type: 4 + 5 + 7 = 3 + ___. Further, the
third grade students were given a test of even further transference. They were given multiplication problems of this
type: 6 x 2 x 3 = 6 x ___. That gestures facilitated transference to both types of new problems indicates that gestures
are not merely a procedural aide; gestures actually foster concept acquisition!
Tip: Teach with gestures. Use Kinaesthetic Symbols to demonstrate a concept. Teach students your kinaesthetic
symbols and how to create their own.
Student Gestures Accelerate Achievement. Children learn more if they gesture while learning.26 It is not simply that
better students gesture: Controlled research proves that teaching students to gesture while acquiring new
information and skills improves comprehension and retention.27 Students who are instructed to move their hands
like their instructor’s gestures are better able to verbalize the mathematical reasoning behind the gestures, even
when that reasoning is never verbalized by the instructor.28
Symbolization of Content v. Hand Movements. Researchers designed an experiment to test if the positive effect of
gesturing is due to simply creating more active engagement via hand movements or if it is due to symbolization of
the content. They instructed third and fourth graders in a math problem-solving strategy using three conditions: No
gestures, hand movements that did not gesture the problem solving strategy, and hand movements that gestured
the problem solving strategy. Students who were instructed with the correct hand movement gestures learned more
than children required to produce partially correct gestures or no gestures.29 The interpretation is clear: Gains from
gesturing are caused by symbolizing the concept kinaesthetically, not just by hand movements. The researchers
concluded, “We may be able to lay foundations for new knowledge simply by telling learners how to move their
hands.”
Hand movements are processed in a very different way than gestures. The brain integrates gestures with speech to
enhance meaning; hand movements during speech are not integrated with speech.30
Student Gestures Increase Retention of Learning. By having students gesture during the acquisition of a math
concept, the concept is retained longer. In the same experiment just described, on immediate recall following
instruction, the group that did not gesture learned the concept as well as the group that did gesture. However, at a
4-week follow-up test, those who were taught to use gestures performed better than those who were not, indicating
gestures help consolidate learning into long-term memory.30This finding using student gestures parallels the finding
that teacher gestures also lead to more retained learning.
Why Gestures and Kinaesthetic Symbols Boost Comprehension and Retention
Gestures represent a parallel communication system. Whereas language is processed primarily in the left
hemisphere, gestures are processed primarily by the right hemisphere.32 To say it crudely, gestures say it another
way. They use a different symbol system, enriching the communicative message. Kinaesthetic Symbols communicate
aspects of the curriculum that are difficult or even impossible to communicate with words alone.
Short-term memory can retain only a limited amount of information. By practicing a sequence of gestures, the
sequence is moved from short-term to procedural memory. We say there is “memory in the muscles.” Actually
muscle memory is merely procedural memory. When first learning a sequence of actions there is considerable
activity in the motor and somatosensory cortices of the brain to encode and carry out those actions. There is also
considerable action in the prefrontal and frontal areas of the brain as we have to direct and maintain our attention
on the task. As the task is repeatedly practiced, however, activation in those areas decreases and we see an
increased activation of the basal ganglia and cerebellum, sites responsible for procedural memory. At that point, we
can run off the sequence of actions without prefrontal activation, without thinking. We say the behavior is
“overlearned” or that we have obtained “unconscious competence.” To use a computer analogy, we move the
behavior from RAM to hard drive where it can be run off without occupying short-term memory.
We all have experienced this process when we learned to ride a bike, drive a car, or use a computer keyboard. At
first we had to think about those actions, but now we can perform those actions without thought or while thinking
about something else. So too is it with Kinaesthetic Symbols. Because kinaesthetic symbols are associatively linked to
verbal content, a student triggers semantic recall as they enact a set of kinaesthetic symbols.
To ensure that link, it is important that when students first acquire a kinaesthetic symbol for a word or concept, we
have students verbalize the meaning of the symbol while they are performing it. Neurons that fire together wire
together. By having students make the symbol while simultaneously verbalizing its meaning, we ensure dendrite
connections are formed between the motor cortex movement and the temporal lobe verbalization.
After the kinaesthetic symbol is associated with the meaning of the symbol, our content is literally stored in more
places in the brain. It is in the motor cortex (the movement of the symbol), the temporal lobe (the verbal meaning of
the symbol), as well as in the visual cortex (the sight of the symbol). Not only is our content stored in those three
places, it is stored in the dendrite interconnections among them! Through the use of Kinaesthetic Symbols we are
actually rewiring the brain in ways that make our content more memorable!
In Conclusion
We have known for years that teaching with Kinaesthetic Symbols is powerful, promoting learning and retention.
The research on gesturing provides empirical evidence proving that teacher and student gestures provide increased
comprehension, recall, and transfer of concepts. For years, educators have relied almost exclusively on the verbal
and visual symbol systems to communicate concepts. We can improve student outcomes dramatically by
communicating also with gestures and teaching with Kinaesthetic Symbols.
References
1 Campbell, L., Campbell, B. & Dickinson, D. Teaching and Learning through Multiple
Intelligences. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon, 1996, 1992, 7-8.
2 Iverson, J.M. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Why people gesture when they speak. Nature, 1998,
396(6708), 228.
3 Colletta, J.-M., Pellenq, C. & Guidetti, M. Age-related changes in co-speech gesture and narrative:
Evidence from French children and adults. Speech Communication, 2010, 52(6), 565-576.
4 Church, R.B. Using gesture and speech to capture transitions in learning. Cognitive
Development, 1999, 14(2), 313-342.
Garber, P., Alibali, M.W. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Knowledge conveyed in gesture is not tied to the
hands. Child Development,1998, 69(1), 75-84.
5 Boyatzis, C.J. & Satyaprasad, C. Children’s facial and gestural decoding and encoding: Relations
between skills and with popularity. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 1994, 18(1), 37-55.
6 Cohen, R.L. On the generality of some memory laws. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 1981,
22(1), 267-281.
Cohen, R.L. & Stewart, M. How to avoid developmental effects in free recall. Scandinavian Journal of
Psychology, 1982, 23(1), 9-16.
Saltz, E. & Donnenwerth-Nolan, S. Does motoric imagery facilitate memory for sentences? A selective
interference test.Journal of Verbal Learning & Verbal Behavior, 1981, 20(3), 322-332.
7 Beilock, S. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Gesture changes thought by grounding it in action. Psychological
Science, 2010, 21(11), 1605-1610.
8 Cook, S.W. & Tanenhaus, M.K. Embodied communication: Speakers’ gestures affect listeners’
actions. Cognition, 2009, 113(1), 98-104.
9 Beilock, S.L., Lyons I.M., Mattarella-Micke, A., Nusbaum, H.C. & Small, S.L. Sports experience changes
the neural processing of action language. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2008,
105(36), 13269-13273.
10 Chu, M. & Kita, S. Spontaneous gestures during mental rotation tasks: Insights into the
microdevelopment of the motor strategy. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2008,
137(4),706-723.
Chu, M. & Kita, S. The nature of gestures’ beneficial role in spatial problem solving. Journal of
Experimental Psychology: General, 2011, 140(1), 102-116.
Ehrlich, S.B., Levine, S.C. & Goldin-Meadow, S. The importance of gesture in children’s spatial
reasoning. Developmental Psychology, 2006, 42(6), 1259-1268.
Hostetter, A.B. & Alibali, M.W. Raise your hand if you’re spatial: Relations between verbal and spatial
skills and gesture production. Gesture, 2007, 7(1),73-95.
11 Goldin-Meadow, S. & Beilock, S.L. Action’s influence on thought: The case of gesture. Perspectives
on Psychological Science, 2010,5(6),664-674.
12 Goldin-Meadow, S. Hearing Gesture: How Our Hands Help Us Think. Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 2003.
13 Cook, S.W. & Goldin-Meadow, S. The role of gesture in learning: Do children use their hands to
change their minds?Journal of Cognition & Development, 2006, 7(2), 211-232.
14 Kelly, S.D. & Goldsmith, L. Gesture and right hemisphere involvement in evaluating lecture
material. Gesture, 2004, 4(1), 25-42.
15 Best, J.R., Miller, P.H. & Jones, L.L. Executive functions after age 5: Changes and
correlates. Developmental Review,2009, 29(3), 180-200.
16 Miller, P.H. & O’Neil, G. A show of hands: relations between young children's gesturing and
executive function.Developmental Psychology, 2013, 49(8), 1517-1528.
17 Church, R.B. & Goldin-Meadow, S. The mismatch between gesture and speech as an index of
transitional knowledge.Cognition, 1986, 23(1), 43-71.
Perry, M. & Elder, A.D. Knowledge in transition: Adults’ developing understanding of a principle of
physical causality.Cognitive Development, 1997, 12(1), 131-157.
18 Church, R.B., Ayman-Nolley, S. & Mahootian, S. The effects of gestural instruction on bilingual
children. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 2004, 7(4), 303-319.
Perry, M., Berch, D.B. & Singleton, J.L. Constructing shared understanding: The role of nonverbal input
in learning contexts.Journal of Contemporary Legal Issues, 1995, 6, 213-236.
Ping, R. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Hands in the air: Using ungrounded iconic gestures to teach children
conservation of quantity.Developmental Psychology, 2008, 44(5), 1277-1287.
Singer, M.A. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Children learn when their teachers’ gestures and speech
differ. Psychological Science,2005, 16(2), 85-89.
Valenzeno, L., Alibali, M.W. & Klatzky, R. Teachers’ gestures facilitate students’ learning: A lesson in
symmetry.Contemporary Educational Psychology, 2003, 28(2), 187-204.
19 Cook, S.W. & Goldin-Meadow, S. The role of gesture in learning: Do children use their hands to
change their minds?Journal of Cognition and Development, 2006, 7(2), 211-232.
20 Valenzeno, L., Alibali, M.W. & Klatzky, R. (2003). Teachers’ gestures facilitate students’ learning: A
lesson in symmetry.Contemporary Educational Psychology, 2003, 28(2), 187-204.
21 Church, R.B., Ayman-Nolley, S. & Mahootian, S. The role of gesture in bilingual education: Does
gesture enhance learning? Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 2004, 7(4), 303-319.
22 Goldin-Meadow, S., Cook, S.W., & Mitchell, Z.A. Gesturing gives children new ideas about
math. Psychological Science, 2009, 20(3), 267-272.
Perry, M., Berch, D. & Singleton, J. Constructing shared understanding: The role of nonverbal input in
learning contexts.Journal of Contemporary Legal Issues, 1995, 6, 215-235.
Richland, L.E. & McDonough, I.M. Learning by analogy: Discriminating between potential
analogs. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 2010, 35(1), 28-43.
Singer, M.A. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Children learn when their teacher’s gestures and speech
differ. Psychological Science,2005, 16(2), 85-89.
23 Cook, S.W., Duffy, R.G. & Fenn, K.M. Consolidation and transfer of learning after observing hand
gesture. Child Development, 2013, 84(6), 1863-1871.
24 Alibali, M.W. How children change their minds: Strategy change can be gradual or
abrupt. Developmental Psychology, 1999, 35(1), 127-145.
Rittle-Johnson, B. & Alibali, M.W. Conceptual and procedural knowledge of mathematics: Does one
lead to the other?Journal of Educational Psychology, 1999, 91(1), 175-189.
25 Diekelmann, S. & Born, J. The memory function of sleep. Nature Neuroscience, 2010, 11(2), 114-
126.
Margoliash, D. & Fenn, K.M. Sleep and memory consolidation in audition. In A. I. Basbaum, A. Kaneko,
G.M. Shepherd, & G. Westheimer (Eds.), The senses: A Comprehensive Reference (Vol. 3, pp. 895-
912). San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 2008.
McGaugh, J.L. Memory: A century of consolidation. Science, 2000, 287(5451), 248-251.
26 Cook, S.W. & Goldin-Meadow, S. The role of gesture in learning: Do children use their hands to
change their minds?Journal of Cognition and Development, 2006, 7(2), 211-232.
Cook, S.W., Mitchell, Z. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Gesturing makes learning last. Cognition, 2008, 106(2),
1047-1058.
Feyereisen, P. How could gesture facilitate lexical access? Advances in Speech Language Pathology,
2006, 8(2), 128-133.
27 Broaders, S., Cook, S.W., Mitchell, Z. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Making children gesture reveals implicit
knowledge and leads to learning. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2007, 136(4), 539-
550.
Goldin-Meadow, S., Cook, S.W. & Mitchell, Z.A. Gesturing gives children new ideas about
math. Psychological Science, 2009, 20(3), 267-272.
28 Goldin-Meadow, S., Cook, S.W. & Mitchell, Z.A. Gesturing gives children new ideas about
math. Psychological Science, 2009, 20(3), 267-272.
29 Goldin-Meadow, S., Cook, S.W. & Mitchell, Z.A. Gesturing gives children new ideas about
math. Psychological Science,2009, 20(3), 267-272.
30 Kelly, S., Healey, M., Ozyurek, A. & Holler, J. The communicative influence of gesture and action
during speech comprehension: Gestures have the upper hand. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of
America, 2012, 131(4), 3311-3311.
31 Cook, S.W., Mitchell, Z. & Goldin-Meadow, S. Gesturing makes learning last. Cognition, 2008,
106(2), 1047-1058.
32 McNeill, D. & Pedelty, L.L. Right brain and gesture. In K. Emmorey & J.S. Reilly (Eds.), Language,
Gesture, and Space,63-65. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., 1995.